V for Vendetta (alternate epilogue)
by ParisianMade
Summary: Havoc and Healing. V lives.


**So here's a secret- I've never written fan fiction before! I watched V for Vendetta a little while back and really fell in love with it, and now I'm motivated to read the actual comic. Anyway, the movie's ending (*spoilers!*) upset me, even though I know it's a good one and I don't think it would have been right if V had survived...but what if? So here's my alternate epilogue, and apparently I have to say this, I don't own any of the characters. Pretty short, I was inspired by a few fanfics I read, although I cannot for the life of me remember who wrote them. I didn't want to write anything too wild or out of character. Feedback is welcome, enjoy!**

Evey shook him. She didn't want him to die. Wind blew down the subway tunnels, the sound of which resembled a winter's gale. At last, her head fell upon his chest; she couldn't hold in her sobs anymore. But with her ear against V's heart she heard a faint sound. A heartbeat, weak but fighting to keep its body alive.

It wasn't quite midnight yet. There was still time for her to pull the lever of the train filled with explosives. In a swift moment of strength, Evey picked up a piece of the long cape lying underneath him and used it to drag his body back to the Shadow Gallery. She'd have to come back and mop up the blood later, if anyone found the tunnels they could easily follow that trail. Once safe inside the Gallery, she ran to where V's first aid supplies were stashed. She had seen the vigilante treat his wounds many times before, and each time she couldn't believe how fast he had healed. This was the only thing giving her hope now, that maybe his strong system could give one more fighting effort and bring him back to her. She ripped his coat open, and found his blood-soaked silk shirt underneath. At this point there was only survival on Evey's mind. She ripped this last piece of fabric away to reveal his scarred body full of bullet wounds and more blood. Either she didn't notice his burned skin or she couldn't see it through the recent damage. She didn't care. He wouldn't have liked this, but it was necessary if she was going to revive him. Still on the floor, she started cleaning the wounds and removing bullets, one by one, best she could- there were so many, tears kept welling up in her eyes. How strong he had been, how deeply he had believed in his cause.

His cause. His Vendetta. Her mind snapped for a moment back to the train. She only had a few more moments before her choice, but her mind was made up. She didn't need to choose between V or the train. She couldn't bring him back if his life's work hadn't been accomplished.

Evey took the gauze and the bandages and wrapped his entire torso many times over as tight as she could, but not too tight, to stop the bleeding. Then she took care of his arms and shoulders and did the same thing. For his legs she hesitated a moment. She needed to tend to those wounds too, and take out the bullets. Evey yanked off V's tall black leather boots and rolled up his pants. Relieved, she realized he only had a few more wounds, the gunmen hadn't really targeted his legs plus V had reinforced the shin of the boots with some medieval greaves from one of the many suits of armor he kept in his hideout. In addition he didn't seem to be bleeding from his waist down so she wouldn't need to probe in the more...sensitive areas...for now. She bandaged his legs and then her attention went up to his neck. She had taken off pretty much all V's clothes except for the mask and the material covering his neck, and blood was coming from there too. She repeated her steps cleaning him up there after cutting away the material.

By now most of V's upper body was bandaged. Evey could now see his flesh for what it was. Scarred. Burned. Red. It was strange, it seemed healed yet it didn't look like skin. Perhaps that's how V could wear all those layers and fight, he couldn't sweat without skin. Then again, his shirts were usually made of soft silk so as not to irritate his delicate limbs. What Evey noticed then was the muscle. He was muscular, well-built after all the training he had put himself through to become the almost invincible shadow he had been for the last twenty years.

But what struck Evey the most was how little any of this repulsed her. V was right, everything underneath wasn't him. Evey knew V for what he was inside and not out. In fact she couldn't help admiring his body, how he must have learned to live with it, heal it, strengthen it, and train it.

V's condition was stable now. The bleeding had stopped, but he had lost a lot of blood. Evey found the morphine he kept when he was in pain and administered some to him through his arm. She hoped he wouldn't suffer and would heal peacefully. Next she did her best to move V into his bed. Hoisting him with her arms under his, she first got his upper body on the bed and then brought his legs on. She then covered him in a blanket and after listening to his soft, slow breathing felt tears of joy and hope sting her eyes. V's mask, scratched and bloody, seemed to stare grinning back at her. She didn't dare take it off. She had already intruded enough, and she was even terrified of how he'd react if he ever woke up.

Evey wiped her eyes and ran back to the tube station. It was ten to midnight.

She was just about to pull the lever when chief inspector Finch surprised her with a gun to her back. He had heard gunshots from V's showdown and had found the abandoned tunnel.

"Stop. Take your hand off that lever." Evey looked at Finch. He didn't seem sure of himself. "No," she replied. "Why are you doing this?" Finch asked, he seemed almost genuinely curious. "Because he was right. This country needs more than a building, it needs hope," Evey said. Finch paused. He lowered his gun. They heard the sound of Big Ben above as it struck twelve. "It's time," nodded Evey. She pulled the lever. They both watched the doors slide closed as the train slowly hummed to a start and glided down the tunnel and out of sight. "Tell me," Evey broke the brief silence, "do you like music Mr. Finch?"

Evey took Finch to the roof and together they watched the fireworks erupt into the night. They could just make out the face of Big Ben shattering as fire emerged from all sides of Parliament among the loud overture blasting from the speakers in the streets. Evey recalled her first encounter with V exactly a year ago, same music, different symbol. He had maniacally laughed and asked if she found it beautiful. She did now.

"Where will you go?" Finch asked after the flames no longer reached the sky. He believed V was dead, he had seen the carnage further down, he has seen the bodies of Creedy and the Chancellor himself. He saw V's punctured and bloodied chest plate, and his knives littered among the dead. There was no way he could be alive, and wherever his body was, Finch could only conclude Evey had pulled that lever because V was no longer around to do it himself. "I don't know. He left me his home, I may lay low for now. But tomorrow there will be a new world, a new government, and I have a feeling you're going to have a lot of work to do," Evey replied. Finch looked at her. Evey went on, "I trust we have an understanding? You won't come looking for what's left of him, won't you? It's over now. In the meantime you have my help, should you accept it." Finch thought about the new weight on his shoulders. He'd do everything right this time, all that Sutler wouldn't. No more lies in this new England. "Yes," he replied, "I should most likely get down there now." The man looked at Evey as if to say something more, but then turned and headed for the lift. He looked exhausted but he felt a newfound strength and motivation rise up inside of him. It was time for him to clean up this mess.

Evey rushed back to V. His breathing seemed more regular now. She gathered a chair and sat in front of V's side of the bed. Processing everything, Parliament, his bandaged body, his burnt flesh she had no choice but to discover, the fact that Sutler was dead, that the country was going into chaos, Evey couldn't help but let the exhausted tears run down her cheeks.

Then her eyes went to V's Guy Fawkes mask, still grinning. She couldn't help but laugh at the irony. And yet, she had completed his plan. There was cause for grinning. But now Evey was faced with V's recovery and eventual wake up. She started talking out loud to him, or herself. She didn't know.

"Oh V..." she started, "you should have seen it. It was beautiful." She paused. Thinking of how to explain the rest. "I couldn't let you die, V. You made me strong but...I couldn't face this all alone. Not yet. I need you, V!" Again the tears. She couldn't help herself. She wished his deep calming voice could be there to reassure her. That he would bring up some Shakespearean quote perfect for the occasion. She wiped her eyes and continued, "now I understand if you never want to see me again. I was selfish, and I'm sorry. But please know you'll break my heart twice over if you go out and die again," she couldn't help but slowly laugh once more, she felt she sounded silly saying this, like a little girl. Evey slowly got up from the chair. The silence was deafening. She walked over to the Wurlitzer and after a few clicks the smooth voice and clear piano of Cat Power's song filled the room. It was the same song to which she had left him after his Larkhill trick on her. She went back into V's room as the music followed to her footsteps.

 _"...Better come come, come come to me_  
 _Better run, run run, run run to me_  
 _Better come..."_

She looked at the eyes of the mask, those little black slits. "Come back to me, V." Remembering the fatigue catching up to her, Evey curled up on the other side of the bed in such a way that she could watch him, and fell fast asleep to the rhythm of V's breathing and the soft singing in the background.

Evey awoke to hunger. V was still unconscious, next to her. For a moment she forgot what had happened the night before, and then she saw the bloody bandages around the vigilante's body. She got up, fetched the first aid and went to work changing the bandages. She was wrapping up his arm when a muffled sound came from under the mask. Like a cough and a gasp. Evey froze.

"...Evey..." V spoke. Evey jumped up and backed away, unsure of how to react. She wasn't sure if he could see her. Still gasping and coughing, V slowly brought his hands to his head and felt his bandaged neck. He stopped and noticed his arms, then he slightly tilted his head down to his torso, covered by the blanket but revealing the gauze underneath. Then he saw her. His Evey. What had she done?

"...V?" Evey whispered. She slowly went to his side, the mask's gaze followed her as she sat next to him. All of a sudden V brought his hand to her face, and saw that he wasn't wearing gloves. His blistered hand against her soft skin perturbed him. He went to pull his hand away, but Evey stopped him and held his hand to her face. "I thought you were going to die!" She whispered again. She couldn't get any sound to come out.

Weakly, V responded, "so did I...but you didn't want me to...so I didn't." His thumb caressed back and forth on her cheek. Evey didn't care about the tears anymore. She let them flow freely as she threw her arms around V and nuzzled her head on his chest. She felt the porcelain chin touch her head, as V stroked her. "I'm sorry," she managed to croak out, "I know you wanted to be this... inspirational idea, I know you wanted to go out with a bang- literally- but ...I couldn't let that happen!" She lifted her head to look at the eyes of the mask. "I fell in love with the idea...just as I fell in love with the man." Her eyes searched the mask. "Forgive me," she said. "Evey," V sighed, "I forgive you. You are so strong...I didn't want to leave you either, but knowing I could never give you all that you deserve, I felt at peace in that moment. In your arms." She had been that one thing he had never seen coming. The one piece of his puzzle he never knew he had. He had always meant to die on that fateful 5th of November, only this time he hadn't been alone. V put his hands on her face again and lifted it to look at him. Evey smiled, "Please, I don't care about that. All I want is you...We'll get through this together, V. We've already achieved so much- oh V you should have seen it, the 5th...it was incredible." V let out a long breath "I trust that it was. Thanks to you, my sweet sweet Evey."

 **I didn't actually know how to end it after having V live (again, it's probably for the best that he dies in the original...oops), so that's why it chops off. Let me know if you think I should continue. Thanks for reading!  
**


End file.
